Hard-core cycling fans bike, hike mountain to see finish

This year, San Jose's hard-core cycling fans and curious spectators for the Amgen Tour of California race delighted in one difference from previous segments that came through Silicon Valley: They finally saw a thrilling mountaintop finish.

"In what other sport can you get this close to the athletes?" said Andrew Cathcart, a self-described "bike geek" who had scouted the route, more than 1,000 feet above the valley floor, last week. "For us, this is like having the Super Bowl on our own city streets."

Last year, San Jose played host to a race stage that began in downtown but finished in Modesto. On Wednesday, thousands of local cycling fans cheered as American Chris Horner of Team Radio Shack zoomed along Sierra Road, crossing the summit finish line well ahead of his teammate and fan favorite Levi Leipheimer of Santa Rosa. Horner won Wednesday's leg, but the Tour of California, the country's biggest bike race, continues in Seaside on Thursday and finishes Sunday in Thousand Oaks.

"You can see them coming from way down there," said racing fan Charles Price, who arrived when the morning was still drizzly and cold.

The right spot

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In professional cycling, the racers can fly past spectators in a blur. Price, his wife, Brenda, and their Milpitas neighbor Randy Nelson chose a spot under some eucalyptus trees for their camp chairs. They could see the race route for 200, maybe 300, yards.

Two fans next to them agreed it was a good spot, but they shared another reason for parking themselves there.

Manuel Viramontes, an avid mountain biker, was recovering from knee surgery. The computer technician from San Jose figured the riders would be worn out after riding from Livermore and over Mount Hamilton before tackling Sierra Road's legendary grade, which reaches 14 degrees in some spots.

"I hope to see a little sweat on them," he said.

Jackie Murdock, a doctoral candidate in English, stopped at the same spot when her legs gave out. She hadn't been riding regularly.

"I saw this great spot and decided to stay here," she said.

Farther up the hill, Texan Marlane Burns was walking with her daughter and her friend from Texas A&M University, newcomers asking whether it was better to watch along the route or from the finish line. The question ignited a lively debate for a good while. Burns had been following the tour from its aborted start at Lake Tahoe and was getting her first close-up look at the South Bay.

"It's awesome," Burns said. "We have lots of good pictures on our phones."

The morning drizzles may have damped the portable outdoor grilling and wine-and-cheese picnics along the route, but not the spirits.

A few turns short of the finish line, Lissa Streegan strung up a banner dedicated to her favorite racer, Andy Schleck, on a barbed-wire fence. The banner said "Schleck Tastic."

A couple of cows on the other side looked on, as if to ask why he's her fave.

"Come on, he's a bad-ass," said the graduate student from Santa Clara University. "What's not to like about him?"

Up the hill

Many on Sierra Road didn't seem to mind that this year's tour didn't end in downtown San Jose. But then again, these were not casual sidewalk fans. Thousands of fans at the summit parked their bikes on the tall grass, still green from this year's healthy rainfall, and waited for the racers to arrive. One of the youngest, 11-year-old Will Wright, had to stop twice to rest before reaching the top and seemed a bit disappointed.

"It was really hard!" he said.

His father, Neil Wright, was beaming. Stopping only twice on Sierra Road is nothing to sneeze at. Many older riders stopped more.

"I'm very proud of him," Wright said.

After Horner's triumph and the final cheers for the trailing group of riders known as the peloton, the Wrights joined the hectic ride down Sierra Road, where cyclists, hikers, motorcycle cops and shuttle buses shared a harrowing trip down.

A bicyclist suffered minor injuries after colliding with a Volvo after the race, according to the California Highway Patrol. The 51-year-old was hurt about 4:10 p.m., said CHP Sgt. John Carman. Carman was not able to confirm whether the cyclist was participating in the race. He was taken to Regional Medical Center of San Jose, where he was treated and released, hospital staff said.